IRS COMPLIANCE

Absolutely! Cryptocurrencies have been eligible to place into IRAs since 2014, when the IRS issued Notice 2014-21, which declared virtual currency (such as Bitcoin) as personal property for taxation purposes. Although the tax agency did not explicitly state that Bitcoin could be placed into an IRA – the IRS never makes such official proclamations – this ruling made digital currency eligible for such use under the rules that govern self-directed IRAs.

BitIRA has set up a process to ensure that the purchase of your digital currency strictly adheres to the guidelines of self-directed IRAs. Our IRA Specialists can help you roll over your IRA or 401(k) to your new custodian without incurring any penalties. Once your account is set up, we ensure IRA compliance each step of the way, including to purchase your Bitcoin and then to store it with a digital currency wallet.

Rest assured that your new Digital Currency IRA follows every rule imaginable in order to remain compliant with IRS guidelines and regulations that pertain to the tax benefits that come with IRAs.

ELIGIBILITY

If you have an IRA, yes, it will be eligible for a rollover to a Digital Currency IRA. In fact, you can rollover your existing IRA to any other custodian as often as you would like. It’s also important to note that this covers any type of IRA, such as Traditional, Roth, SEP or SIMPLE.

If you have a 401(k) or another employer-sponsored plan (such as a 403b, 457 or TSP), your eligibility to rollover to a Bitcoin IRA is not always possible. For those folks who are eligible, it is usually because their account was set up with an employer that they no longer work for. But even if your account was set up with your current employer, there are certain times when you still may be eligible to move your plan. For more info, please contact us so that we can learn more about your situation and help you inquire about your eligibility.

Absolutely! You can create any characterization of IRA that you’d like for your cryptocurrency, just as you could for any other asset class. In addition to moving Bitcoin to a Roth IRA, you can also setup a Traditional IRA, SEP IRA and SIMPLE IRA.

The custodian that BitIRA has partnered with, Preferred Trust Company, has one of the most competitive fee schedules in the industry. Fees for every account will vary, so it’s impossible for us to tell you here what your fees will be.

When considering a service for your Digital Currency IRA, it’s critical that you understand these fees, as they could represent a large, ongoing cost. Here are some questions that you may want to ask before committing to a service:

What are the ongoing flat fees? Do I pay these fees on a monthly or annual basis?

Are there any variable fees? How does those work?

If I hold more than one coin in my account, do I pay additional fees for those?

To learn what your custodial fees would be with BitIRA, please contact us.

Other companies in our industry will charge you at every opportunity, seemingly for any time you make any changes to your account. At BitIRA, we do NOT charge any fees to liquidate the cryptocurrency in your IRA.

There are a number of factors at play when creating your new account. For example, when rolling over funds, we find that the old custodian can often drag their feet on the transfer to your new custodian. Additionally, once your new account is funded with Preferred Trust Company, it’s necessary for them to do their due diligence to securely establish your account.

When it’s all said and done, we find that it can take anywhere from one to three weeks for your new account to be fully funded and ready to purchase digital currency.

ACCOUNT SECURITY

When establishing BitIRA and our processes, the security of your retirement funds was one of our most critical considerations. At this early stage for digital currency, some technology has not yet been fully developed, so unfortunately the industry has been marred by some negative publicity. For example, notable hacks have rocked the Mt. Gox exchange and BitGo wallet.

Determined to produce the most secure solution possible, we have developed a proprietary process that offers you the world’s first insured cold storage solution for Digital Currency IRAs. Other companies may offer some of the security measures you’ll read about below, but NO OTHER COMPANY offers the combination of protocols that we’ve put into place.

To read about the features that make BitIRA “The World’s Most Secure Digital Currency IRA”, click here.

While your currencies are held in storage, they are fully covered against any theft. However, you’re also covered during the purchase and sale of your currencies by an additional $1 million Consumer Protection insurance policy, which protects against any internal cases of fraud or theft. Additionally, we hold a $1 million Cybersecurity Policy from Hiscox.

Simply put, there is no more secure option on the market for the storage of cryptocurrencies in your IRA.

LIQUIDATION

As long as you keep your IRA funds within the umbrella of your account, there are no penalties; you can move from any eligible asset to another, and as often as you would like.

So, whether it’s three days or three years after you’ve created a Digital Currency IRA with BitIRA, you can call us up and liquidate your cryptocurrency holdings very quickly, and without penalty. As long as those proceeds remain within the umbrella of your IRA, you can use them to purchase another IRA-eligible asset (for example, equities, precious metals or cash). However, as with any other IRA, if you take any form of distribution before you are eligible to do so, there would be penalties.

Yes. Upon distribution, if you want to keep your cryptocurrency as opposed to converting it into cash, our partner custodian, Preferred Trust Company, will let you do so. Not all other custodians will allow this.

Do you have more questions? If we haven’t answered your question here, please email us at info@bitira.com or call us at (800) 299-1567.

Important Disclaimer: Pricing data (and resulting portfolio valuation and performance data) displayed on the Site are provided by or based on information provided by one or more exchanges, may be delayed or otherwise not up to date, may be incorrect, and there is no guarantee that any amount of Digital Currency can be purchased or liquidated for the price indicated. No price is guaranteed until the transaction is settled.

All pricing and other information (including portfolio valuation and performance data) on the Site is provided on an "as is" basis for your personal information only, no representations are made as to the accuracy of such information, and you agree not to rely upon such information for any purpose. BitIRA (a) expressly disclaims the accuracy, adequacy, or completeness of any pricing or valuation or performance data displayed and (b) shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or other defects in, delays or interruptions in such data, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. BitIRA shall not be liable for any damages relating to your use of the information provided on the Site.

All transactions must be verbally confirmed, are subject to BitIRA's Customer Transaction Agreement, and additional documentation confirming the transaction will need to be executed before a transaction will be processed.

Important Tax Considerations: BitIRA is not a legal or tax professional and does not provide legal or tax advice. It is BitIRA's understanding that Digital Currencies may be held in an individual retirement account, but if you have any questions regarding the legal rules applicable to individual retirement accounts, including which assets may be held in such an account, you should contact a legal or tax advisor. BitIRA makes no representation or warranty that purchasing Digital Currency for placement in an individual retirement account complies with government regulations or statutes or that current rules and statutes (or the interpretation of existing rules and statutes) will not change.

Important Investment Considerations: In BitIRA's opinion, Digital Currencies are a highly speculative investment, and anyone considering purchasing Digital Currency should have the financial flexibility and resources, and the risk tolerance, to lose the entire investment. BitIRA does not offer any opinion as to which Digital Currency(ies) to purchase, in what amount, and for how long a customer should hold such Digital Currency. Nor does BitIRA offer any opinion as to what percentage, if any, of a customer's portfolio should be devoted to alternative and highly speculative investments like Digital Currency. Historical performance is no guarantee of future results. BitIRA does not guarantee or represent that anyone purchasing Digital Currency will make a profit.

BitIRA is not an investment specialist, tax specialist, financial planner (certified or otherwise), or retirement advisor, and BitIRA does not provide investment advice, tax advice, financial planning services, or retirement planning or retirement-specific advice. BitIRA facilitates the purchase of Digital Currency, nothing more, and charges a fee for the service it provides (based on the transaction value). No fiduciary relationship, broker dealer relationship, principal agent relationship or other special relationship exists between BitIRA and its customers.

Customers purchasing or liquidating Digital Currency make all investment decisions.